CMU T&E - Updates for June 2025
NYC Private Fireside Chat, Hackathon, Boston PillarVC x DraperU event, and more!
Hey Tartans,
Bringing you the June newsletter early with a bunch of upcoming events!
Here’s what’s coming up:
Exclusive fireside chat on scaling up AI Startups w/Smith Point Capital & Dylan Fox from AssemblyAI in NYC
Home-Cooked AI Hackathon with CMU T&E in NYC
CMU T&E Boston x PillarVC x DraperU VC Event
Scroll for details and RSVP links below 🚀
🔥 T&E NYC | Fireside Chat with Smith Point Capital & AssemblyAI's Dylan Fox - Scaling an AI Startup for the Real World
Join us for a morning of breakfast, conversation, and networking where we are excited to feature Dylan Fox, CEO at AssemblyAI.
What We'll Cover:
Discuss the critical trade-offs and advantages of building specialized, best-in-class AI solutions versus leveraging broader AI platforms, and how to position your company for success in this dynamic landscape.
Uncover how AI is fundamentally altering business models, operational efficiencies, and competitive advantages across industries, providing insights into where the greatest opportunities lie for the next generation of companies.
Discover the specialized GTM strategies for taking deep-tech AI infrastructure to market by securing enterprise partnerships and demonstrating tangible ROI in a rapidly evolving ecosystem.
This event is organized in partnership with the CMU Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship and the CMU VentureBridge program, where this in-person event is open exclusively to CMU Founders community in New York City.
Smith Point Capital is a venture capital firm redefining growth equity for the intelligent enterprise. We invest in mission-critical enterprise software at the convergence of data, AI, edge computing, and precision applications. Our operator-led approach combines Fortune 500 executive experience with deep investment expertise, providing both hands-on operational support and strategic capital to help companies accelerate growth and maximize market impact. For more information, visit
Carnegie Mellon University’s VentureBridge (VB) program is a pre-seed fund and an accelerator program, part of the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship, focused on supporting Carnegie Mellon founders working on their startups full-time. Since 2018, the VB program has supported dozens of startups collectively valued at over half a billion dollars.
Events from May Newsletter:
🏗️ T&E NYC | Home-Cooked AI Hackathon with CMU T&E
📅 Saturday, May 31 | 🕔 9:00 AM - 6:30 PM EDT
📍 Fractal Tech, 111 Conselyea St Floor 2, Brooklyn, NY
What would AI applications be like if they were made like a meal for someone you love?
Home-Cooked AI is about building tools for the people closest to you: your friends, your family, or even just yourself. Something that understands your mother’s love of singing, your friend’s way of organizing thoughts, or your own small habits.
Inspired by the idea of “home-cooked apps” from Robin Sloan, we’re building personal AI tools that are thoughtful, useful, and maybe a little quirky. This is cozy tech, made to fit into your life like your favorite mug ☕️
Who Should Join?
All disciplines welcome - anyone excited about experimenting with AI-enabled tools for their friends & fam are encouraged to participate.
Come with a project or a friend. Need a team? We’ll handle assignments after the opening talks.
📅 Schedule for the Day
9am - Doors Open (coffee, mingle)
10:00am - Hack!
1:00pm - Lunch
6:00pm - Submissions
6:30pm - Demos
Thank you to Fractal Tech for hosting the event and sponsorship from Recruiting from Scratch with support from CMU Tech & Entrepreneurship.
🚀 T&E Boston | From Bootstrap to Backers: Insights from Angel Investors
📅 Wednesday, June 4 | 🕔 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM EDT
📍 Pillar VC, 9th Floor, 500 Boylston St, Boston, MA
CMU T&E Boston Hub is partnering with Pillar VC and DraperU for an evening of conversations around angel investment and an opportunity for networking.
We will be featuring three angel investors who will share their insights on what they expect to see from an early-stage company that moves them to invest with an opportunity for direct Q&A with the panelists.
We plan to host an hour of networking and socialization from 6:00pm - 7:00pm before we dive into the panel discussion with our angels from 7:00pm - 8:00pm.
Thank you to Pillar VC for hosting us in their space and DraperU for sponsoring the food.
👩🚀 EchoHer Events for Women & Non-Binary Founders
EchoHer is part of the CMU Project Olympus Incubator Program
🔍 Finding the Right Cofounder
📅 Friday, May 30 | 🕠 5:30–8:00 PM PT
📍 San Francisco
Choosing the right cofounder is one of the biggest decisions you'll make as a founder — and you don't have to figure it out alone. Join EchoHer for a hands-on workshop where we’ll cover:
Do you really need a cofounder?
How to find the right partner
Red flags and lessons from founder breakups
Real founder stories — the good and the messy
🗽 NYC | CMU VentureBridge Demo Day (Investors Only)
📅 June 2 | 🕔 5:00–7:30 PM ET
📍 New York, NY (Exact address shared upon approval)
👥 This is an invite-only event for investors and VIPs.
Doors open at 4:30pm. A networking reception will follow after the startup pitches, which will feature the new cohort and select VB alumni in the portfolio.
Carnegie Mellon University’s VentureBridge (VB) program is a pre-seed fund and an accelerator program, part of the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship, focused on supporting Carnegie Mellon founders working on their startups full-time. Since 2018, the VB program has supported dozens of startups collectively valued at over half a billion dollars.
Thank you to Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman for being an amazing champion of CMU founders—welcoming us to their New York office and continually supporting the CMU founder community.
Thank you to the Patrons that support our programming at the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship.
📣 Mentorship Call: Interested in mentoring the next VentureBridge cohort? Email Steven at stevengu@andrew.cmu.edu — we’re especially looking for mentors in B2B sales, wearable tech, legal/IP, and more.
🔗 Stay Connected
Want to co-host an event, recommend a speaker, or support the community?
Drop us a note at cmutehq@gmail.com and join the Slack.
Let’s keep building this thing together 💥
See you soon,
— The CMU T&E Team